Getting Visual Assistance with an iPhone

In one volume

Technology writer Judy Dixon takes the reader on an app tour of the 10 most user-friendly and accessible apps for getting visual assistance with an iPhone. Coverage includes assistance provided by apps through machine learning and artificial intelligence for identifying colors, currency, objects, and barcodes, as well as scene identification, handwriting recognition, and reading short text. Also covered is getting assistance from sighted humans through apps such as AIRA and Be My Eyes. She also briefly discusses the nature of help itself and how there are as many opinions on using sighted assistance as there are individuals. If you are considering using apps like these to save yourself time or add convenience to otherwise inconvenient tasks, this book will help you choose the ones right for you.

Table of Contents

The Nature of Help
Choosing the Best Strategy for the Job
Being Mindful of Your Privacy
Machine Learning, Augmented Reality (AR), and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Using your iPhone's Camera
About this Book

Chapter 1: What Is It? Identifying Things with the iPhone's Camera
Identification Categories
Colors
Currency
Object Identification
Reading Short Text
Handwriting Recognition
Barcodes
Scene Identification
App: ColorSay - Hear the World in Color
App: NantMobile Money Reader
App: Cash Reader - Tool for Blind
App: TapTapSee - Camera for the Blind
App: Seeing AI - Talking Camera App for Those with a Visual Impairment
Short Text
Document
Product
Person
Currency
Scene Preview
Color Preview
Handwriting Preview
Light
App: Envision AI - Enabling Vision for the blind

Chapter 2: Getting Assistance from Humans
App: BeSpecular - Help the Blind
App: FaceTime
App: Be My Eyes - Helping the Blind
App: Aira - For the Blind and Low Vision
What Is Aira?
Becoming an Aira User
Plans and Pricing
The Aira Equipment
The Aira App
Aira Access
What an Aira Agent Can Do
What an Aira Agent Cannot Do
Aira and Privacy
Putting It All Together